


"I love you but shut the fuck up" -read at 3:47PM✓

by confusedTraveler



Category: Hiveswap, Homestuck
Genre: Ashen Romance | Auspistice, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOBI, Multi, both timpas and petrie are indigobloods, pronouns are in the notes at the beginning, rimika is a jadeblood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:35:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28044780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/confusedTraveler/pseuds/confusedTraveler
Summary: No, monsters of myth and legend aren’t scary. What’s scary- in Timpas’ current opinion- is when your favorite person suddenly can’t or won’t respond to your texts and you have no idea where they are or what’s happened, and even if you’re just overthinking it and maybe they’re just fine, the not-knowing spawns all the most awful possibilities in your mind and they won’t shut up until youknow.
Relationships: Original Troll Character(s) & Original Troll Character(s) (Homestuck), Original Troll Character(s)/Original Troll Character(s) (Homestuck)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	"I love you but shut the fuck up" -read at 3:47PM✓

**Author's Note:**

  * For [niosism](https://archiveofourown.org/users/niosism/gifts).



> Birthday fic for tobi @niosism; fang requested a fic of their and my fantrolls (Timpas is theirs, Petrie is mine) sneaking into the brooding caverns to visit bree @Maybl00d's fantroll Rimika. Timpas uses they/them and ze/zir, Rimika uses she/her, and Petrie uses she/her and they/them. HAPP BIRTH

The sun doesn’t rise on Alternia so much as it _assails_. What on some other world might be a slow, gentle warming of the earth as honeyed radiance seeps over the rim of the horizon is instead a brutal assault, as a sheer wall of blistering heat _slams_ itself into the planet’s hemisphere with little ceremony nor pause, sending all living things unfortunate enough to dwell on its surface skittering into their cool, shadowed hidey-holes.

This, for the surprisingly many denizens of the planet, is a typical event. The casual brutality of the sunrise is something the troll population has long grown accustomed to. Many, many years of living trapped beneath the three-pronged tyranny of the Empress had imbued in many of them a certain hyperawareness of rules, both spoken and unspoken, an instinct that has helped to keep the majority of the populace alive and breathing on a day-to-day basis. For example, a fairly basic and widely-understood rule is this: _don’t go out after sunrise, ever._ Not unless you have either a deathwish or a very, very specific mutation.

Timpas Dalibr _does,_ in fact, have a very specific mutation. It’s not the one that involves being able to survive sunlight, but, well, they’re doing their best to survive it regardless. Which involves running very fast.

The indigoblood quietly curses under their breath as ze forces their strut sticks to keep moving. It’s unclear to zem as to whether the burning sensation they feel is because of their exhausted muscles or because of the blistering sunlight practically right on zir ass. Either way, there’s no time to stop and check. _* << 0f all the days f0r an unexpected heatwave… y0u’ve got to be fucking kidding me with this >>*_ They can hear their breath coming out in increasingly ragged pants, magnified because of the way they’ve pulled up zir sweater to protect zir head and ear fins from the light. Their glasses are becoming increasingly fogged, threating to slide down and off their face with each step. _* << davaq 0wes me 0ne >>*_

Fortunately for them, the pitch-dark maw of the brooding caverns begins to emerge on the horizon shortly. In spite of zir leg muscles becoming increasingly noodle-like the longer they keep moving, Timpas manages one extra burst of speed, running full-tilt for the entrance. Before they can enter, however, an arm reaches out from the shadows and forcibly yanks them inside.

The change from the blinding heat of the outside and the cool darkness inside the caverns is jarring. The chilly air is a relief, but Timpas’ more immediate concern is the person directly in front of them, whose blunted claws are currently digging into the front of zir sweater. A flare of panic bursts inside zir thoracic cavity. Shit, is it the knife-wielder Rimika mentioned?

However, before Timpas can grab a weapon, the hand on their shirt lets go, allowing zem to regain their footing. As the fog clears from zir glasses lens and zir vision adjusts to the dark, they’re greeted by the familiar face of one Petrie Psytis.

“where hΔve you _been_ ” the other indigoblood whisper-shouts, eyes wide. “we were supposeδ to meet hΔlf Δn hour ago!”

“*<< whatever, i'm here n0w, right? maybe y0u’re just too early. >>*”

Petrie lets out an exasperated puff of air, but doesn’t add anything else. Judging by the lack of (additional) burns on their lab coat, it’s safe for Timpas to assume she must have arrived before the heat wave hit. Technically Timpas could have made it there sooner as well, if only they hadn’t dozed off in the library earlier. But hey, they’re both here _now,_ and no one’s dead yet, so that’s a win. 

“δiδ rimikΔ sΔy Δnything?”

“*<< y0u d0n’t have t0 whisper, the jade curfew already started h0urs ag0. >>*” Timpas quickly scans the entryway, just to be sure. No one else around but the two indigos, to zir relief. They quickly go about adjusting their appearance, pulling the neck of zir sweater down from where it covered zir head and ears and cleaning their glasses. “*<< and n0, she hasn’t messaged since yesternight. >>*”

Just admitting that makes zem feel uneasy. It wouldn’t be the first time their kismesis-turned-matesprit went silent on them for a while— some of the senior jades had a habit of confiscating phones, she said— but it seemed like Rimika hadn’t been quite herself even before she’d stopped responding to Timpas’ messages. It gave zem a bad feeling they hadn’t been able to ignore.

“*<< she didn’t say anything t0 y0u either? >>*” they ask their ashen partner, though they were already sure they knew the answer.

Petrie shakes her head, mouth pressed into a thin line. “no, she δiδn’t” they reply, idly readjusting the hijab pin under her chin out of habit. “…you sure this is whΔt she wΔnts? us bΔrging in like this?”

To be honest, Timpas feels just as nervous. This wouldn’t be the first time they set off on a stealth mission, but that normally involved Rimika sneaking out of the caverns so the two- or three- of them could just hang out for a little while, maybe grab some food, go see a movie. Take a little time away from caste duties and the looming threat of the future.

But this feels…different, somehow. More grim. And not even the cool, mystical kind of grim involving cryptic omens written in the sky or strange monstrous beings conveying prophecies with perfect rhyme schemes that all just make sense somehow. Things like that, ze doesn’t find scary at all, just fascinating.

No, monsters of myth and legend aren’t scary. What’s scary- in Timpas’ current opinion- is when your favorite person suddenly can’t or won’t respond to your texts and you have no idea where they are or what’s happened, and even _if_ you’re just overthinking it and maybe they’re just fine, the not-knowing spawns all the most awful possibilities in your mind and they won’t shut up until you _know_.

The indigoblood mutant hurriedly finishes adjusting zir shirt and hair and turns to face their auspistice. “*<< 0k, h0w do i look >>*”

“sweΔty and gross.” Petrie states, bluntly, reaching over to briefly unsnag one of the other troll’s earrings where it had gotten hooked onto the collar of zir turtleneck.

“*<< w0w thanks f0r the supp0rt >>* _”_

“no problem” they deadpan, although Timpas can hear a hint of exasperated fondness in their voice. The cheeriness subsides as her eyes dart over to the many tunnel entrances before them. “…you woulδn’t _h_ Δ _ppen_ to remember the wΔy, would you?”

Timpas has to roll zir eyes. Given how hopeless Petrie is with directions, it’s a wonder they managed to find their way out of their lab in the first place. Ze grabs one of the biochemist’s sleeves and tugs her towards a small passage on the far right of the entryway.

The jades’ dorms technically aren’t that far away the cavern entrance, so long as you know the way. For the two indigobloods making their way through the passages, however, the journey seems to last much, much longer, the stress of finding their friend and partner coupled with the oppressive atmosphere of the caverns at this time of day. During the night, the caverns are abuzz with activity, filled with the sounds of working trolls and lusii being shepherded and grubs squalling for food, attention, or both.

Had it been nighttime, the indigobloods could have probably just swaggered in and gone wherever they pleased. It wasn’t as though anyone would try and stop them, especially not jades, whose duty to uphold the sanctity of the caste system was just as pressing as their own, if not slightly more.

But now, after curfew, the brooding caverns are almost completely silent, save for the occasional sound of footsteps in the far distance, no doubt the cloistermates assigned to guard the mother grub’s room that day. However, in this part of the caves, there’s not a soul to be seen. The soft _tap_ of a tip-toed footsteps, the rustling of clothes, even faint exhalations of breath—all these sounds are strangely amplified in the silent, empty tunnels, and even though logic states that they _should_ be safe, both indigobloods can’t help but feel a sense of imminent danger pressing down on their necks.

Timpas’ foot accidentally sends a small pebble skittering across the floor. They cringe as the sound is immediately broadcast, bouncing off the walls and further into the tunnels. _* << it’s fine, n0 0ne heard that. >>*_

For a few moments, there’s nothing. The two indigobloods continue their way through the tunnels, occasionally feeling along the wall as they search for the shortcut that leads to the dorms. Surely it can’t be _that_ much further.

At the exact same time, both of them here a soft _shhhk_ noise from somewhere in the tunnel behind them.

Had the pair not already been on edge, they might have stopped and reasoned that the sound could have been a number of things, not all of them knife-related. The way things were, however, the two of them _immediately_ make a break for it.

Timpas seizes Petrie’s arm, and the two of them sprint down the tunnel as fast as they possible can. In their haste, they very nearly pass the boulder blocking the shortcut to the dorms. Fortunately they didn’t, on account of Timpas nearly smacking right into it. Without missing a beat, the two indigobloods roll the boulder out of the way and dive into the small tunnel beyond.

A few minutes later, Rimika Davaq starts at the sound of a furious hammering at her door. _WhAt the , , ,_

With some effort, she crawls out of her recuperacoon—and immediately flops onto the floor. _Hnrghgnhgn._ Working double shifts in the mother grub’s chambers are a bitch, triple ones even more so. Every muscle in her arms and legs twangs painfully, like….evil pasta noodles…or somethin…

Oh, there’s the door again. With tremendous effort, the jadeblood peels herself off the comfy patch of floor she’d been slowly dozing off on and shambles over to the door, fully prepared to see an irate elder jade with a mop and a scowl and half a million extra chores to do.

What she isn’t expecting, by a LONG shot, is both her red and ashen partners rushing in with looks of absolute terror on their faces and slamming the door shut behind them. “WH-“

Her matesprit throws zir arms around her. “*<< why is y0ur hive so damn creepy, i swear >>*” they groan. “*<< i think i legitimately just feared f0r my life and it wasn’t even because 0f a h0t m0nster, this sucks >>*”

Rimika stands stunned for a moment before hugging them back, tightly. She then pulls away to look Timpas in the eye. “WhAt Are you doing here? And , , ,” She sniffs once, then wrinkles her nose. “Why do you smell burnt?”

“*<< 0utran a heatwave t0 c0me find y0u, like a t0tal badass >>*”

“And here i thought it wAs just you , , , stinky Ass”

“*<< fucking mean >>*” grumbles the indigoblood, though their tone conveys no real malice.

“seriously, though, this plΔce sucks” Petrie comments, stepping in to join the hug. Rimika doesn’t disagree.

After a few moments, the jadeblood releases the other two. “you didn’t , , , Answer my question. why Are you guys here?”

Timpas shrugs with feigned nonchalance, “*<< 0h y0u kn0w >>*”

They’re met with looks of exasperation from zir companions. Dammit, they know zem too well. So much for being the cool mysterious one, then.

“*<< maybe i was a _little_ w0rried. >>*”

“oh , , , reAlly?” There’s a slight smirk on Rimika’s face now, similar to that Timpas would often face when they were both playing kismeses- only now there’s no uncertainty, no doubt, just sparkling fondness in the jadeblood’s eyes, a fondness ze knows is reflected in zir own. Beside her, Petrie looks like they’re trying hard not to giggle.

“*<< yes really. >>*”

The three talk for a little while longer, Rimika taking the opportunity to finally complain about her day. “I swear it’s AlwAys when _i'm_ on mother grub duty thAt people decide to sneAk out , , ,” she groans.

“becΔuse you never complΔin Δbout it. just be _me_ _Δ_ _n_ every once in a while.”

“SpeAk for yourself , , ,”

“*<< either that 0r start carrying a laser rifle ar0und >>*”

“Only if you buy me one , , ,”

“*<< lma0 n0 way >>*”

Eventually Rimika starts yawning and wincing again as her body helpfully reminds her of how exhausted she is. Petrie pokes her in the shoulder. “go bΔck to sleep, stupiδ”

The jadeblood squints skeptically at her partners. “so Are you two just going to sneAk bAck out of here?”

“fuck no” both indigobloods state in unison, shuddering as they remember the tunnels.

“*<< we’ll just hang 0ut til m0rning >>*” Timpas states, confidently, although the bravado is ruined when ze lets out a loud, jaw-cracking yawn. “*<< n0 pr0blem >>*” Petrie nods in agreement while badly disguising a yawn behind one hand.

A thoughtful look crosses Rimika’s face. “I guess you could sleep over , , , if you get up eArly you could probAbly get out after moonrise without Anyone seeing.” She says. Her gaze darts over to one side of the room. “one problem , , ,”

The other two follow her gaze.

“*<< and there was 0nly 0ne recuperac00n >>*”

“Δnδ there wΔs only one recuperΔcoon…”

It’s not an easy fit by any means, but they manage it somehow. The slime isn’t _really_ enough to cover three people, but the comfort of one another’s presence more than makes up for it.

Timpas is the first to awaken the next night. They blink awake, blearily, and turn their head to take in the sight of the cocoon’s other occupants. They’d all somehow gotten even _more_ tangled up since going to bed, forming a convoluted mass of limbs that will no doubt make getting up an absolute pain in the- well, in the everything, probably. For now, however, the other two’s faces are peaceful, the gentle rise and fall of their respective chests a comforting reminder that their slumber is only that, and nothing more.

Ze smiles and shuts zir eyes once more. Just a little while longer couldn’t hurt.


End file.
